 Root attended the Thornton-Donovan School in New Rochelle, New York, and was a member of the class of 1983 at Columbia University, studying pre-law and political science.In June 2016, Root described himself as a "Jew turned Evangelical Christian".As of November 2016, Root described himself as Jewish, and says he considers Donald Trump to be the first Jewish president, in the same sense that Bill Clinton was often called the "first black president".